Mayabunder, Jan. 9: Ms. Pallavi Sarkar, IAS, Secretary (Agriculture & AH&VS), Andaman & Nicobar Administration, visited Mayabunder and Rangat Zones on 08.01.2026 and 09.01.2026 to review the progress of the SPICE PRAVAH programme. The review was conducted in the presence of the Deputy Commissioner, North & Middle Andaman, and the Assistant Commissioner, Rangat, who also issued specific directions to field functionaries for timely implementation and coordination.
During the visit, the Secretary interacted with PRI representatives, Gram Pradhans, SHG members, and progressive farmers, and discussed in detail the challenges faced by farmers with a view to addressing their concerns in a time-bound manner.
Focus on Farmer Mapping, Registration and Market Linkages
Addressing the gathering, the Secretary emphasised that SPICE PRAVAH is a farmer-centric programme and called upon Gram Pradhans to play a pivotal role as local change makers. She urged PRIs to actively support farmer mapping and widespread enrolment on the free online farmer registration portal, which enables marketing support, aggregation, and value-chain planning under the programme.
She informed that 103.5 hectares of spice plantations have been covered in the Union territory benefiting around 700 farmers so far.
Community Spice Gardens by Convergence Approach
The Secretary highlighted the importance of scientific cultivation practices, including intercropping of spices in existing coconut and arecanut plantations, coupled with focused value addition and structured market linkages to sustainably enhance farmers’ income. She also encouraged PRIs to identify suitable community lands for expanding spice cultivation clusters or Community Spice Gardens and assured that convergence with Rural Development schemes would be actively pursued to support infrastructure creation and scale-up.
Input Management and Field Inspections
Addressing concerns regarding fertiliser availability, the Secretary informed that the issue would be resolved shortly and advised farmers to use chemical fertilisers judiciously to minimise adverse impacts on health and the environment. During the visit, the Secretary inspected departmental farms and the fields of progressive farmers participating in the SPICE PRAVAH initiative to assess field performance and explore further scope for spice cultivation and processing in the district.